International debt relief possible Mary Heidkamp and James Lund Another disaster struck just as the year end approached. This time it was Venezuela. Mudslides buried thousands of people and left about 150,000 homeless. Not exactly Christmas week feel-good news. For many caught up in the Christmas spirit, this story may have slipped by with little notice. It is even more likely that a different, ongoing and slow-motion disaster every bit as deadly as a mudslide has gone unnoticed as the church begins the Jubilee Year and the world starts the New Millennium. This disaster is the International Debt Crisis. As the U.S. economy continues its fantastic growth, it takes an act of will for us to stop and see that the poorest countries in the world are suffering and the poorest people are literally dying as a consequence of this debt. It is so severe that Pope John Paul II has made debt relief a central theme for the Jubilee year. In “As the Third Millennium Draws Near” he wrote, “Christians will have to raise their voice on behalf of all the poor of the world, proposing the jubilee as an appropriate time to give thought, among other things, to reducing substantially, if not canceling outright, the international debt which seriously threatens the future of many nations.” When you consider that debt forgiveness is at the center of the biblical understanding of jubilee, and when you see the deadly effects of debt on people in poor nations, debt relief becomes a concern that people of faith must consider. Add one more component, the genuine possibility of success, and this issue becomes a compelling cause. At first glance, the chance of influencing global institutions on this issue may seem negligible. Yet, last year, Congress passed significant legislation--with bipartisan support--that made a major down payment on the kind of debt relief that will literally save lives and provide hope for millions of people. The bill directs the president to cancel 100 percent of the debt owed directly to the U.S. by eligible countries, while requiring that the savings accrued to these nations be used exclusively to address poverty. It also affects debt owed to multilateral institutions such as the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund. The U.S. Bishops’ Conference was an important advocate for this legislation. In this year of Jubilee, the bishops’ conference will be working to add to the first installment on debt relief. Every letter, e-mail and phone call to Congress will help. This can be a great way for Catholics to celebrate the Jubilee with actions that will have tangible consequences in reshaping our world toward justice for the least of our brothers and sisters. Heidkamp and Lund are nationally known veterans of more than 20 years’ Catholic peace and justice work.
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